LIVE: Chattisgarh sees 4,563 new Covid cases, highest since start of pandemic

Chattisgarh on Wednesday recorded 4,563 new cases of the Covid disease- the highest single-day spike since the beginning of the pandemic last year. The caseload has now climbed to 349,187 with 319,488 recoveries, 4,170 deaths and 25,529 active cases, a health official told news agency PTI.

Dilbag Singh, the Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Wednesday.

Punjab on Wednesday registered 2,452 new cases of the Covid-19 disease and 56 more deaths, taking the caseload and death toll to 239,734 and 6,868 respectively, according to the state health department's bulletin. Jalandhar added the maximum number of cases at 343, followed by Ludhiana (328), Amritsar (296) and Mohali (254)

A minimum of 50 students were detected positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in two schools in South Kashmir, according to news agency PTI.

Himachal Pradesh reports 285 new Covid-19 cases, 139 recoveries and 3 deaths, in the last 24 hours.

Delhi reports 1819 new Covid-19 cases, 399 recoveries and 11 deaths on Wednesday.

39,544 new Covid-19 cases and 227 deaths in Maharashtra in the last 24 hours.

Kerala logged 2,653 fresh Covid-19 cases, including 17 health workers, and 15 related deaths on Wednesday, taking the caseload to 11.24 lakh and the toll to 4,621, reported ANI.

Tami Nadu reports 2579 new Covid-19 cases, 1527 recoveries, and 19 deaths on Wednesday.

Madhya Pradesh reports 2332 new Covid-19 cases, 1261 recoveries and 9 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Uttarakhand reports 293 new Covid-19 cases, taking the total number of cases to 1,00,411.

Goa reports 200 new Covid-19 cases, 62 recoveries and 1 death in the last 24 hours.

Nagpur district reported 2,885 new Covid-19 cases, 1705 recoveries and 58 death, in the last 24 hours, as per Civil Surgeon, Nagpur, reported ANI.

European Union states are expected to receive 107 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines by the end of March, an EU Commission spokeswoman said on Wednesday, hitting an earlier target but far below initial plans, reports Reuters.

Pfizer announced Wednesday that its Covid-19 vaccine is safe and strongly protective in kids as young as 12, a step toward possibly beginning shots in this age group before they head back to school in the fall, reports AP.

Odisha's Covid-19 tally on Wednesday surged to 3,40,917 after 297 more people tested positive for the infection, the highest single-day spike this year, a health department official said, reports PTI.

Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Wednesday said people should be ready for stringent measures in the coming days to curb the spread of Covid-19 in the state, reports PTI.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday directed officials to make district-level action plans to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the state., reports PTI.

Number of Covid tests has been increased from 25,000 to 70,000 tests per day. All necessary steps are being taken. We are in alert mode. We don't have so much cases that we consider imposing lockdown, said Bihar Health Minister Mangal Pandey, reports ANI.

Telangana saw 684 fresh coronavirus cases, the highest single day spike so far this year, pushing the aggregate to 3.07 lakh, while the toll rose to 1,697 with three more fatalities.

Russia has registered the world's first vaccine against COVID-19 for animals, the country's agriculture safety watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor said on Wednesday.

Russia already has three coronavirus vaccines for humans, the most well known of which is Sputnik V. Moscow has also given emergency approval to two others, EpiVacCorona and CoviVac. The vaccine for animals, developed by a unit of Rosselkhoznadzor, was named Carnivac-Cov, the watchdog said.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany will halt the use of AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine for people younger than 60 starting Wednesday after a handful of new cases of severe blood clots emerged. The policy change, endorsed by regional health ministers, came after the release of new data on potential side effects. It’s a fresh blow for the troubled Astra vaccine, and another threat to Europe’s inoculation drive, already hampered by delays, controversy and political battles.

The number of registered cases of coronavirus infection in Turkey over the past day was 37,303, this is the maximum since the end of November, the country's Ministry of Health said in a statement. "Today, 37,303 new cases of Covid-19 were registered, 1,376 patients were hospitalized; 155 patients died, since the beginning of the pandemic - 31,385. A total of 2,054 patients are in serious condition," the ministry said.